The present invention relates generally to electronic circuits such as integrated circuits, and more particularly to dynamic voltage regulation in such circuits.
In general, a voltage regulator is a circuit that is designed to maintain a constant output voltage level as operating conditions change over time. Electronic circuits are often designed to operate with a constant DC supply voltage. A voltage regulator circuit provides a constant DC output voltage and ideally contains circuitry that continuously holds the output voltage at the desired value regardless of changes in load current or input voltage (assuming that the load current and input voltage are within the specified operating range for the regulator). Maintaining accurate voltage regulation is particularly challenging for processors when dynamic voltage frequency scaling (DVFS) is used to adjust the output voltage of the regulator and thereby control the level of power consumption and the throughput capacity of a processor.